Category Archives: May Graduates

In order to become better leaders, people typically focus on improving their weaknesses. But now, research is showing that developing your strengths is actually more effective.

John Zenger, Joseph R. Folkman, Robert Sherwin, Jr., and Barbara Steel—authors of the book How To Be Exceptional: Drive Leadership Success By Magnifying Your Strengths—believe that working on strengths dramatically improves one’s leadership skills and leads to more successful business interactions.

“If you concur that leadership is a set of skills and not a body of knowledge or a personality type, then learning leadership skills probably has much in common with learning any other set of skills,” they say.

Here are some tips they provided on improving leadership strengths:

1. Have humility. The authors believe that humility, or humbleness, is a difficult strength to improve on, but will make a good leader in the long term if mastered.

“It is difficult to come up with a plan for improving humility, and often leaders would write something like ‘just be more humble’ or ‘don’t be arrogant.’” Try exercises in and outside of the workplace where whenever someone describes a scenario or situation they’re in, you put yourself in their position. Do this over and over, and being able to relate to others will come more naturally.

2. Identify the behaviors that should be developed. “We propose a model with three important filters for identifying a behavior that could be expanded for strength. We label this the CPO model, where C stands for ‘competence (how effective you already are with this skill),’ P for ‘passion,’ and O for ‘organization need.’”

3. Ask for feedback. This will allow you to let your guard down and embrace open-mindedness. Good leaders should always welcome suggestions.

“A key competency of any successful leader is the ability to continually gather, accept and respond to feedback. Data collected from thousands of respondents on the coaching behavior of their boss confirm that asking for feedback is the behavior on which these leaders received the lowest single scores. Yet, when we look at the willingness of a leader to ask others for feedback, we find that there is an excellent overall leadership effectiveness.”

4. Take a behavior modeling class. An extremely powerful formal development process for teaching many leadership skills is behavior modeling. This technology utilizes video clips that show managers handling difficult situations well. The course content explains the key action steps that were being followed. The bulk of the learning process involves participants practicing and rehearsing these skills with one another.

5. Try cross-training. Once you’ve developed a particular skill to a high degree of competency, it’s time to look at sharpening other skills which are complementary to the primary strength, such as communication or technical abilities.

“When athletes aspire to become more than just casual participants in a sport, they often turn to cross-training. Aspiring runners take up cycling, swimming, and weightlifting. Our favorite example is a football coach who scheduled several of the lumbering lineman to take ballet lessons in an attempt to make them more conscious of their footwork and acquire more agility.”

With a little British pomp and a lot of British pop, London brought the curtain down on a glorious Olympic Games to a close. However, it was some of the great athletes at those games more than the pomp and the pop that really made a lasting impression on everyone by doing things out of the ordinary.

Many of us were inspired by each story that was covered, and impressed by athletes who overcame incredible odds to make it to the games. No matter what industry you are in, there are valuable lessons from the Olympics that we can apply to our businesses.

For example, when Usain Bolt crossed the finish line during his 200-meter final, he made one simple gesture. He didn’t point to the sky. He didn’t raise his hands in the air. Bolt merely held up his finger to his lips, making a gesture of silence to his opposition. He’d reached a new pinnacle in his career and his first reaction was to silence those who thought he’d never make it.

Although Usain Bolt could be seen as arrogant and full of himself, his actual performance matched his level of self- confidence. As a result, he is now become a legend.

Just as Bolt excels in sprinting, there are champions in every profession and business. It’s the difference between one who simply gets the job done vs. someone who gets the job done incredibly well, makes a lasting impression and also a big difference to the final outcome.

While there are dozens of things leaders can learn from the Olympics, the following lessons can help to strengthen our organisations.

Lessons

Leadership research says that learning agility is the largest predictor of long-term success. Great athletes are great learners. Learning and improvement are often about the small and simple things, great sprinters are very analytical about all kinds of little things – their start, stride, footwear, clothing, etc. Learning ideas become shared over time. Learning can be defined as the ability to generate and generalize ideas.

Once a sprinter has innovated something new, then those ideas will likely to be transferred to others. Leaders learn by both doing new things and by learning from others. Then some ability to success is learnable, some are inherent.

The best sprinters in the world have great abilities to learn, but they also have natural ability. Therefore, it is important to position people in jobs where their talents are more applicable and relevant to the role.

Sense of pride

The spirit of the Olympics brings out the best in most of the athletes. Many of those great athletes are so committed to their craft that they invest more than 10,000s of hours in improving their skill, confidence and also to make the most of their own potential. Success therefore is talent plus preparation and it seems the bigger the role preparation plays over talent in the final outcome.

Also, many of the successful athletes while they feel a sense of pride in the sport, they also have a huge sense of pride in representing their country.

Likewise, companies need to invest time and resources to create that sense of pride within their organisations, to ensure that their employees do their best work for the company and also to help their employees to realize their full potential.

212 Inc. “Gives Back” by Making Personal
Donations and Participating in Walk for the National MS Society

Leading direct marketing and sales agency raises moral and donations for MS Society

212 Inc., a leading outsourced sales and marketing company, announced participation in the National MS society walk in Narragansett, Rhode Island. Employees of 212 also gave personal donations to the charity.

By making these donations, 212, Inc. will help the National MS Society fulfill their various goals, which include furthering research to prevent, treat and cure MS, as well as reaching out to individuals, families and communities living with MS.

The choice was made to raise money and participate in the walk for MS when the team members of 212 realized that almost all of them know a friend or family member living with MS.

“Not only is MS a disease I personally want to help raise awareness of and do my part to help fund research, but it was also a great way for us to come together as a team,” said Andrea Atkinson, President, 212, Inc.

Andrea Atkinson has already set future gift-giving goals including participating in the Walk for CF this May and a possible charity softball game this summer.

About 212
212, Inc., is headed by Andrea Atkinson. The company specializes in direct marketing by bringing products and services directly to consumers.

For many May grads this year the excitement, pride, and celebration of finally finishing has been smeared with anxiety and trepidation due to the lovely state of our economy.

As a small business owner, I have had the pleasure of interviewing some of these May grads for my Entry Level positions. I have asked most all of them how they feel about competing with the umpteen May grads of 2009 and of course all the others that have recently been forced to find new careers. Their answers for the most part include some description of being scared out of their minds…

So what is the answer to finding employment as an individual graduating in a recession?

Find something that will get your foot in an industry. It might not include all the glamorous projects you had hoped for as a freshman, but it’s something that you can learn from – its FREE education! I personally would rather be an assistant to someone who has the job I want then work at the local coffee shop because my dream job wasn’t hiring.

Open your mind. Look into industries you hadn’t originally considered. Sales shouldn’t be a four letter word to college grads anymore. Sales positions are always in demand and can provide good income if you have some personality.

Summer work. I know it isn’t as exciting, but taking a summer hourly wage position could give you the money to pay the bills – and the time to freelance or volunteer! Look for some temp work to ease your mind this summer and give your free time to something that will help build your resume. I’m sure any company out there could use free writing, graphic design, or coordination.

Ask for advice. Ask family members or people you know who are doing well for themselves about the industry they are in and how they got started. I would, however, beware of the advice encouraging you to travel or rush back into school – this tends to be an easier decision, but will increase your debt and when you are done who’s to say the economy will be any better…

Finally, my message to May grads this year is: Relax. Despite what people have told you, your first job out of college does not determine your future. According to the US dept. of Labor, the average tenure at a position for an adult between 25 and 34 is only 2 years. Meaning, recession or not, you will have multiple jobs in your life. Gain some experience and try to enjoy it!

For many May grads this year the excitement, pride, and celebration of finally finishing has been smeared with anxiety and trepidation due to the lovely state of our economy.

As a small business owner, I have had the pleasure of interviewing some of these May grads for my Entry Level positions. I have asked most all of them how they feel about competing with the umpteen May grads of 2009 and of course all the others that have recently been forced to find new careers. Their answers for the most part include some description of being scared out of their minds…

So what is the answer to finding employment as an individual graduating in a recession?

Find something that will get your foot in an industry. It might not include all the glamorous projects you had hoped for as a freshman, but it’s something that you can learn from – its FREE education! I personally would rather be an assistant to someone who has the job I want then work at the local coffee shop because my dream job wasn’t hiring.

Open your mind. Look into industries you hadn’t originally considered. Sales shouldn’t be a four letter word to college grads anymore. Sales positions are always in demand and can provide good income if you have some personality.

Summer work. I know it isn’t as exciting, but taking a summer hourly wage position could give you the money to pay the bills – and the time to freelance or volunteer! Look for some temp work to ease your mind this summer and give your free time to something that will help build your resume. I’m sure any company out there could use free writing, graphic design, or coordination.

Ask for advice. Ask family members or people you know who are doing well for themselves about the industry they are in and how they got started. I would, however, beware of the advice encouraging you to travel or rush back into school – this tends to be an easier decision, but will increase your debt and when you are done who’s to say the economy will be any better…

Finally, my message to May grads this year is: Relax. Despite what people have told you, your first job out of college does not determine your future. According to the US dept. of Labor, the average tenure at a position for an adult between 25 and 34 is only 2 years. Meaning, recession or not, you will have multiple jobs in your life. Gain some experience and try to enjoy it!

Flickr Photos

I want to take the time to personally thank and congratulate everyone on our BEST WEEK EVER!Last week our organization produced over 100k in revenue! What does that mean???1. We were able to reach over 10,000 customers2. We secured over 900 customers for new services for our clients3. Our closing ratio is at nearly 10% (versus the average 1% which is common […]

http://www.prlog.org/12006761-212-inc-participates-in-charity-event-to-raise-money-for-operation-smile.html12 Inc., a sales and marketing firm in the Boston area, will be participating in a charity event for Operation Smile. The company will be attending a holiday party in Boston’s financial district to raise money for the charity. 212, Inc. is a premier out […]

We are excited to be adding new members to our management team and, with the added leadership, we are expanding to more locations. We would like to give some recognition to the team members that have worked hard for their promotions. Congratulations Oliniyi on your promotion to Assistant Manager!Great Job Okletey on taking on the expansion of a new locati […]

http://www.forbes.com/sites/glennllopis/2012/10/01/6-ways-successful-teams-are-built-to-last/ Glenn Llopis, Contributor It takes great leadership to build great teams. Leaders who are not afraid to course correct, make the difficult decisions and establish standards of performance that are constantly being met – and improving at all times. Whether in th […]

http://www.i4u.com/2012/10/boston-ma/smile-operation-212-money-tournament-raises-dodgeball-inc-charity212 Inc., a sales and marketing firm based out of Wellesley, MA, traveled to Miami for a national client hosted conference. The weekend is an annual event geared around rewarding the country’s client vendors. In addition to dinners, a talent show, free jet s […]

212 Inc., a Massachusetts based sales and marketing firm, traveled to Miami and participated in a charity event for Operation Smile. 212 Inc., a sales and marketing firm based out of Wellesley, MA, traveled to Miami for a national client hosted conference. The weekend is an annual event geared around rewarding the country’s client vendors. In addition to d […]

http://www.businessinsider.com/5-ways-to-find-your-strengths-to-be-an-exceptional-leader-2012-9Samantha CortezIn order to become better leaders, people typically focus on improving their weaknesses. But now, research is showing that developing your strengths is actually more effective.John Zenger, Joseph R. Folkman, Robert Sherwin, Jr., and Barbara Steel—aut […]

Executives of 212 Inc. will be traveling to Miami Beach for an annual national conference and a bit of fun on the beach.The weekend will be hosted at the Miami Eden Roc hotel and will include some brief meetings, a chance to relax on the beach, networking opportunities with several business professionals from all across the country, and two charity tournamen […]

http://www.forbes.com/sites/jeannemeister/2012/09/10/10-leadership-lessons-from-jeff-weiner-ceo-of-linkedin/2/ Jeanne Meister, ContributorI had the pleasure of attending the first video pilot interview of LinkedIn CEO Jeff Weiner by Adam Bryant, New York Times Senior Editor for Features. As a user of LinkedIn and loyal reader of Adam’s Corner Office columns […]

http://www.forbes.com/sites/jasonselk/2012/08/24/5-things-business-leaders-can-learn-from-tiger/After falling off the performance roadmap for a few years, Tiger Woods has recently re-established himself as one of the top players in the world. Not only is Tiger positioned to make history and become known as the greatest golfer of all time, but it also appear […]

http://www.thenational.ae/lifestyle/well-being/learn-the-skills-of-a-horse-whisperer-for-leadership-successTauseef Qadri first started exploring the idea of "equitelligence", or equine-inspired emotional intelligence, while studying management sciences at Loughborough University in the UK. Admittedly, Qadri was not your average management student. […]

http://www.dailymirror.lk/business/features/21327-leadership-lessons-from-olympics.htmlBy Dinesh WeerakkodyWith a little British pomp and a lot of British pop, London brought the curtain down on a glorious Olympic Games to a close. However, it was some of the great athletes at those games more than the pomp and the pop that really made a lasting impression o […]

Congratulations to Rachelle and Kyle for being awarded with a trip to San Francisco for a leadership conference this month. You have done a great job and we are excited to send you to the West Coast for additional career training. Can't wait to see what you bring back. Have fun and great job!Congratulations Rachelle on your newest promotion. We are exci […]

http://www.free-press-release.com/news-212-inc-celebrates-over-five-years-of-success-1344917677.html 212, Inc., a New England based sales and marketing firm, is celebrating five years of successful business. Over the years the company has expanded to over five times its founding size and expects to continue its growth in the months and years to come.212, In […]

Expert Interviews By Lisa Petrillihttp://www.business2community.com/expert-interviews/how-introverts-can-be-exceptional-entrepreneurial-leaders-0242367I had the honor and pleasure of sitting down with Josh Zywien of Open View Labs to talk about how introverts can be exceptional in entrepreneurial leadership roles, an area of importance to Open View as they a […]

http://www.entrepreneur.com/blog/224141Are you more like Howard Schultz of Starbucks, the billionaire investor Warren Buffett, Richard Branson of Virgin, or Tony Hsieh of Zappos? Knowing the answer could help you become more successful in running your business.Three business leaders -- Tony Tjan, Dick Harrington, and Tsun-yan Hsieh -- wrote a book together c […]